Burras forget past pain in bid for grand final glory

Two nailbiting grand final losses in succession would be enough to knock most football club down for the count.

But Diggers Rest is no ordinary club.

The Burras dropped the Riddell District Football League decider to Riddell by just seven points in 2013.

A year later, they came up short again, this time to Romsey by 18.

But as they prepare for their third successive grand final this weekend, Burras’ president Chris Payne believes it’s the attitude the club takes to the disappointment that allows it to bounce back.

“We don’t really look at it or draw any sort of inspiration from it,” he said. “We’re just about looking forward and looking to the challenge ahead. We certainly don’t look back. We just focus on the next time and on winning.”

The Burras appear to have timed their run to September perfectly, getting through the first two thirds of the season unscathed before hitting their straps.

Diggers Rest won the last five home-and-away matches before knocking off fellow top-three sides Riddell and Romsey in the first two weeks of finals.

After the weekend’s preliminary final, another meeting with Romsey is all that stands between the club and that elusive premiership.

Payne put the sustained success down to the players’ enjoyment at running out together each week. “They’re a very resilient group,” he said.

“The hunger is still there. The boys made a commitment to each other a couple of years ago that the job wouldn’t go undone.

“Hopefully, this is the year we can really reward the football club and the boys themselves for the hard work they’ve done since last year.”

Saturday is looming as a huge day for the Burras, with the club hoping to make it a double premiership celebration.

Diggers Rest has also qualified for the reserves grand final, taking on Sunbury Kangaroos.

The Burras also qualified for the finals in the under-18 division.

Payne said a huge focus for his committee had been ensuring every aspect of the club was strong, not just the senior side. “Our main job when we took over was just the culture of the football club,” Payne said.

“Having people wanting to be around the club who were happy to help out and who wanted to bring their families along was a big focus.

“That just drove onto our successful results on the field in both football and netball.

“We have players in that reserves side who could probably walk into 80 per cent of the senior sides in our competition.

“The fact they still want to play football for Diggers Rest is a testament to our club.”